Community Seder celebrates diversity

ADL event stresses improving cultural understanding

Tosin Odusanya (center) and her son, Abimbola, 17, were among the 500 people who attended the 3d annual Anti-Defamation League 'Nations of Immigrants' Seder at UMass-Boston yesterday to share stories of heritage, break bread with people of different cultures, and build bridges of understanding. (Globe Staff Photo / Dina Rudick)

The thundering beats of traditional Chinese drums rang through the ballroom of the University of Massachusetts-Boston campus yesterday, marking the start of the third annual Anti-Defamation League's community Seder.

"We are having people share unique journeys and stories, and Passover is the springboard," said Derrek Shulman, the regional director of the New England region of the ADL. "We are building bridges of understanding and respect, and celebrating differences."

The "Nation of Immigrants"-themed event invited people of different religions, ethnicities, and sexual orientations to gather and discuss stories of heritage and culture.

About 500 people attended, including cochairs Mayor Thomas M. Menino and City Council President Michael Ross. Participants spoke in native tongues and wore colorful attire from different regions.

"This is a very positive endeavor. Sharing stories and breaking bread together is a good thing," said Stephen Cooper, a singer in the Love Tones musical group from Myrtle Baptist Church in Newton, that performed at the Seder. "We can sit down at the table of peace and kick around ideas of how to live in peaceful existence."

Shulman said the event was also organized to address the recent spate of hate crimes.

On Jan. 22, Keith Luke, 22, a Brockton resident, allegedly killed two people and raped a third in Brockton. One of the victims was Cape Verdean, and authorities said Luke was targeting as many nonwhite people as possible.

"It is timely because there has been a measurable increase in hate crimes against Jews, immigrants, and the GLBT community," said Shulman. "They have become the scapegoats, and this is an opportunity to confront and counteract this hate."

Jacqueline Church, who moved to America from Tokyo in 1959, and now lives in Boston, said she was the victim of several hate crimes in Boston. In one incident, after she got into a cab, a woman made anti-Asian remarks and tried to pull her from the vehicle.

"It's interesting to see the bad things people do to each other and how everyone shares it in one respect or another, no matter what country you're from," Church said.

Students from the Kwong Kow Chinese School played the large red Chinese drums at the side of the room. A large world map hung at the entrance, and attendees were invited to place stickers on it to represent their origins. Kosher meals of Caesar salad, matzo, and the traditional Seder plate were served to reflect the Passover traditions.

"We should reject division and celebrate and showcase differences," said Shulman as he welcomed the crowd to the Seder. "We are going to turn this cavernous room into a home with nothing but guests."